This invention has a common background with the invention disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,488,008. With the advent of deregulation of the telephone system in the United States, many conceptual changes have been required or are yet to be required in both equipment and services, not at least which is the identity of the party responsible for repair and maintenance between subscriber premise and telephone company owned telephone equipment. A telephone subscriber, for instance, may now own his own telephones, premise wiring, PABX's, and other associated equipment, the maintenance of which is sole responsibility. It is in this context where the invention is most useful.
Recent rulings by the FCC require that a device be installed on the premises (either inside or outside the premises) of each subscriber that will permit testing of the integrity of that part of the subscriber loop owned by the telephone company. The rationale behind this rule is to provide a means whereby a subscriber may avoid a telephone service charge by the telephone company arising out of a subscriber complaint regarding faulty telephone services in those instances were the faulty service is in that portion of the subscriber loop belonging to the telephone company.
By use of this invention, either a subscriber and/or a telephone service person may easily unplug from a jack a previously connected plug, insert another plug connected to an operating telephone into the jack and if a call can be made using such an arrangement, that portion of the subscriber loop owned by the telephone company is without fault and the fault thus must be in the subscriber premise wiring or the equipment of the subscriber. A telephone subscriber may perform this testing function for himself and thus identify between his premise wiring (owned by him) and the subscriber loop (owned by the telephone company) where the fault lies and who is responsible for fixing it.
The invention is a network interface device designed and adapted to be connected to the non-telephone company owned premise wiring and the telephone company owned portion of the subscriber loop at the junction where the two connect one to another and is designed for inside owner premises applications.
The device, mechanically and electrically, connects the premise wiring to the non-premise wiring and provides a quick disconnect and connect means there between, namely a plug and jack. The plug is mechanically and electrically engaged to the jack, thus forming an electical circuit between a subscriber owned premise wiring equipment and the telephone owned portion of a subscriber loop. Removal of the plug from the jack disconnects the two and provides a jack into which a plug, connected to an operating telephone, may be inserted. If there is no fault in the telephone owned subscriber loop portion, dial tone will be heard and a call may be made, thus indicating that any fault must be in the subscriber owned premise wiring and/or equipment. Absence of dial tone and a completed call indicates the reverse, i.e., there is a fault in the telephone owned portion of the subscriber loop. In addition, the device contains a second jack (a customer jack), which provides a means for connecting one or more telephones.